Day 1 started early! We headed out to the airport at 3 AM. No traffic, no waiting in line to check in, and no security line worth speaking of got us to the gate much sooner than planned. I’ve never seen O’Hare that empty before…

Our flight left right on time at 5:59 AM. We landed a few minutes early in Charlotte, NC, walked to our transfer gate, and boarded a few minutes later. After 3 1/2 more hours of smooth flying we were in St. Maarten! There was a lot of cloud cover but luckily no rain. Plenty of heat and humidity though!

US Airways Wing

Princess Juliana International Airport

Waiting For Car Rental Shuttle

Unfortunately neither of our phones had service there so we couldn’t call her family to see if they made it in yet. We picked up our car rental and headed for the hotel to check in. Our suite at the Royal Palm Beach Hotel was very nice! It has two bedrooms/bathrooms, a full kitchen, and it looks to be newly renovated. No internet service in room (which is a little disappointing since it was advertised), but they do have WiFi in the lobby and in one of their lounges.

Hotel Room Kitchen

Hotel Room - Dining Area

Hotel Room - Living Room

Hotel Room - Living Room Open Wall

View From Hotel - Front

View From Hotel Room - Back I

View From Hotel Room - Back II

View From Hotel Room - Back III

After settling in, her sister-in-law who grew up here (Nancy) called to let us know that her and the rest of the family arrived. They were all at her cousin’s house and invited us to hang out and eat. I’ve seen some impressive houses before, but this one brought a whole new meaning to “a big house on a big hill”!!!

The Big House

Three stories, 6 bedrooms, EACH having a bathroom to match, an in-ground pool, 2 full kitchens (one of the roof!), marble everything, and imported artwork & furniture throughout made me want to check out of the Royal Palm and stay there for the week instead!!!

Big House - View From The Roof

Big House - Pool

Big House - Roof Gazebo

We ate and chilled out a bit. The St Maarten breeze lullabied me to sleep on a lounge chair next to the pool. We headed back to the suite with Mimi’s brother (Jimmy) and other sister-in-law (Roxanne) a couple of hours later. Mimi went to sleep, her brother & Rox explored a little bit, and I did the same on my own. I found a little spot called the Cappuccino Bar that was down the street from the hotel that had good food, great music, cheap (but good) drinks, and free WiFi. I came back and dragged Mimi there. We hung out until 3 AM or so then called it a night…

Cappuccino Bar